This invention relates to medical clamping devices and is particularly suitable for clamping a dialysis catheter, or the like.
In the course of various medical procedures, tubular conduits for conducting bodily fluids or medications into or out of a patient's body are used. Because of the relative orientation between a patient and various medical equipment that is utilized in conducting a medical procedure, flexible cubing that extends between the medical equipment and the patient may become kinked and block the flow of fluid. Such kinking often occurs in the vicinity of where the tubing is connected to conduct fluid into or out of the patient.
More particularly in the normal course of blood dialysis, a temporary dialysis catheter is inserted into a patient's blood vessel and extends to a blood dialysis machine. It is a common occurrence for the temporary dialysis catheter to kink in the vicinity of the catheter's entrance into the patient. The catheter kinking significantly reduces, if not entirely blocks, blood flow through the catheter.
The use of a strain relief to eliminate such kinking may be attempted. But, the implementation of a strain relief may typically only relocate the kink to a location adjacent to and unprotected by the strain relief. Also, the use of a strain relief device with delicate equipment may tend to make the equipment bulky with associated use of the equipment becoming awkward.
Thus, one may readily see the need for an effective device to alleviate the occurrence of kinking and fluid blockage in temporary dialysis catheters and the like.